The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus and denied service connection for neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities, right lower extremity, left lower extremity, and short-term memory loss. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus is presumed due to herbicide exposure at U-Tapao Royal Thai Air Force Base.
The deciding factor: The evidence supports a finding that the Veteran was exposed to herbicides during service at U-Tapao Royal Thai Air Force Base in Thailand, which is considered presumptive for certain diseases including diabetes mellitus. The Board found no credible evidence of neuropathy or short-term memory loss related to service and denied these claims.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, neuropathy of the right upper extremity, neuropathy of the left upper extremity, neuropathy of the right lower extremity, neuropathy of the left lower extremity, short-term memory loss
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- August 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19166601
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19166601.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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The Board remands the claims for service connection for hypertension and diabetes mellitus to obtain further medical opinions regarding their potential relationship to toxic exposures during active service.
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- Denied
The Board denied service connection for cervical spine condition, diabetes mellitus, heart condition, lumbar spine condition, and urinary frequency and voiding condition as there was no evidence of a current diagnosis or in-service incurrence or aggravation.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded the claims for sinus disability, bilateral hip disability, right shoulder disability, hypertension, sleep apnea, diabetes mellitus, skin disability, back disability, bilateral neurological disability of the upper extremities, and bilateral neurological disability of the lower extremities.
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